Brussels, 25/05/2000 (Agence Europe) - The European Commission has approved "guidelines" to complete the block exemption regulation in favour of distribution agreements and the provision of goods and services. The regulation adopted last December (see EUROPE of 23 December 1999), and the guidelines, will take effect on 1 June. The texts replace three block exemption regulations currently in force. The existing agreements between companies continue nonetheless to benefit from former regulations until end 2001. Motor vehicle distribution is, moreover, excluded from the scope of this directive.
The block exemption regulation allows companies accounting for less than 30% of the market share to benefit, as a foregone conclusion, from exemption from the ban on agreements for their distribution agreements (exclusive distribution, selective distribution, franchising). A black list specifies the banned restrictions: price fixing, de facto market distribution, non-competition clause of over 5 years.
The guidelines specify among other things: a) the kind of agreements between companies that can benefit from exemption; b) under what conditions such exemptions may be withdrawn; c) in what way the market share of companies is defined; d) how the Commission plans to implement legislation in cases which are not covered by the regulation.
The exemption regulation and the guidelines come within the framework of modernisation of European competition rules begun in 1997. "The aim is to simplify our rules and reduce the regulatory burden for companies, while ensuring a more effective control of vertical restraints implemented by companies holding significant market power", declared Competition Commissioner Mario Monti.
The guidelines were published on the Commission website: http: //http://www.europa.eu.int/ comm/dg04/lawenten/en/entente3.htm#iii_1)